Police And Troopers Team To Target DUI

Published: December 15, 1999 12:00 AM

Officers from the Wooster City Police Department and troopers from the Wooster Post of the State Highway Patrol will be teaming up this weekend for their first joint law enforcement operation.

"Lights on for Life," as the venture has been dubbed, is part of a national holiday life-saver weekend targeted for this Friday through Sunday. The period is traditionally one of the most dangerous for highway travelers since much pre-holiday celebrating takes place during that time, leading to a particularly high traffic fatality rate. The operation also occurs during national Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month in which law enforcement focuses on getting drivers who are under the influence off the highways.

Lt. Joel Smith, commander of the local patrol post, and Wooster Police Chief Steve Thornton said they have approved special overtime hours for their respective officers to be on the road this weekend to crack down on DUI offenders. Both offices receive grant money through the state of Ohio to conduct special DUI and seat belt enforcement activities throughout the year. Usually such programs are undertaken during the Christmas holiday season, Fourth of July and Labor Day. "Typically," said Smith, "that's when we see the greatest numbers of these offenders running around the roads."

Smith said that turning on the headlights on the police and OSP cruisers will create a "symbolic observance to remember those people killed and injured by drinking drivers," while reminding motorists that law enforcement has an "ever-watchful eye out for drunk drivers." The post commander said he is "encouraging everyone to participate in the effort by turning their headlights on while traveling this weekend."

Thornton noted that with this weekend having some of the shortest days of the year, "having the lights on increases visibility and safety as well."

[Article continues below]

Statistics show that during December 1998, 37 fatal alcohol-related accidents occurred statewide and 2,219 people were injured in such mishaps.

Ten years earlier, in 1988, 766 people lost their lives in Ohio alcohol-related crashes. Smith noted, however, that due to a strong focus during the past decade on DUI enforcement and education, that number has been cut by more than half. Last year there were 374 alcohol-related deaths in the state. Statewide, 26.1 percent of all highway traffic deaths are attributed to driving under the influence, while in the Wayne-Holmes County area that statistic is only 20 percent.

Smith said that during 1999, DUI arrests locally have risen 10 percent. Thornton added that his officers have arrested 48 people this year under age 21 for DUI violations. He said students at various college-level institutions in and around the Wooster community are all too often involved in such incidents.

Through October, city police have arrested 101 persons for DUI. For all of 1998, Wooster police made 134 DUI arrests.

Both lawmen said that the city of Wooster and the surrounding area will be the primary target of this weekend's operation. Thornton likened it to a "full-court press" against DUI offenders. Both enforcement groups last cooperated in October of 1998 in a child-restraint safety program held at Wayne Towne Plaza, but have never before undertaken a joint road assignment.

In the spring they are considering partnering again in a "Cops In Shops" program which places law enforcement officers behind the counters in establishments that sell liquor in an attempt to nab minors attempting to make purchases.

According to Wooster Police Capt. Don Edwards, "This is a great opportunity for both departments to enhance traffic safety around the city. We look forward to doing more of it in the future."